The best way to stay connected to the Android pulse everywhere. Our new app contains all the top Android news, reviews, app & games and the best deals just for you. Now with Disqus profile integration.

Android Authority newsletter

The best way to stay connected to the Android pulse. Our main newsletter is the Android Weekly which is sent every Sunday and contains all the top Android news, reviews and features from the past week.

100% Privacy, No Spam Policy: We value privacy and your email address will be 100% secure. We hate spam just like you do and will never send you too much email, nor will we ever share your information with anyone.

Yureka features an HD LCD display (for a pixel density of 267 ppi) with Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The device is powered by a 64-bit Snapdragon 615 processor with eight cores, with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage. The dual SIM slots allow the use of 3G and Cat. 4 LTE cards, for download speeds of up to 150Mbps.

Other notable specs include a 13MP Sony Exmor sensor, as well as a 2,500-mAh battery, fitted into a 154.8 x 78 x 8.8 mm body.

Cyanogen OS 11 is based on Android 4.4.4 KitKat, with an update to Lollipop promised for the close future. Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster said during the launch event that his company tries to combat the “stagnation in the smartphone market,” and acknowledged the importance of the booming Indian market: “There’s a battle being fought in India, and Cyanogen+Yu, we intend to win that battle.”

Cyanogen used the occasion to officially introduce its new Themes app, which allows users to quickly change the appearance of the phone’s UI. Two free themes will be pre-loaded on the Yureka. Another big piece of functionality is Nextbit Baton, a feature that syncs the state of various apps across devices.

The Yureka will sell for Rs. 8,999, the equivalent of $142, exclusively online through Amazon. Pre-registrations will open tomorrow at 2PM IST, with the device set to begin shipping in the second week of January. First buyers will receive a free leather back cover worth Rs. 999.

Given the aggressive price, it remains to be seen if Micromax/Yu are able to satisfy demand without resorting to the flash sales model pioneered by Xiaomi or restrictive pre-registrations (invites) like OnePlus.

The arrival of Yureka further complicates the battlefield in a market that still has huge growth potential, as opposed to the saturated Western world. Only about a tenth of India’s 900 million phone users have smartphones, and large players are already duking it out for a slice of the market. Contenders include local players like Micromax or Karbonn, Chinese upstarts like OnePlus and Xiaomi, and global powerhouses like Samsung or Motorola.